A pension is not one decision. It is four decisions stacked on top of each other — and the last one is usually irrevocable.

CalSTRS 2% at 62 — PEPRA

CalSTRS PEPRA tier. Applies to California public school teachers hired on/after 1/1/2013. Age factor hits 2.0% at age 62 (vs. 60 for Classic) and caps at 2.4% at age 65. Uses highest 36 consecutive months of compensation regardless of service length, and has a pensionable compensation cap (adjusted annually — $149,016 in 2024 non-Social-Security members). No Career Factor bonus — the 2.4% cap is the ceiling. Member contribution rate is the greater of 8% or half of normal cost.

Age Factor Table — CalSTRS 2% at 62 PEPRA

Survivor Options

CalPERS 2% at 55 — Classic Formula

Applies to CalPERS “Classic” members: state miscellaneous employees, school classified staff, and contracting local agency employees hired before 1/1/2013. Uses highest 12 consecutive months of compensation (single-highest), or highest 36 if the agency elected that. Age factor table below.

Age Factor Table — CalPERS 2% at 55 Classic

Survivor Options

CalPERS 2% at 62 — PEPRA Formula

PEPRA (Public Employees' Pension Reform Act) applies to employees hired on/after 1/1/2013. Lower benefit factor than Classic, mandatory highest-3-year average, and a lower pensionable compensation cap (adjusted annually — $149,016 in 2024 non-Social-Security members). Employees pay 50% of normal cost.

Age Factor Table — CalPERS 2% at 62 PEPRA

Survivor Options

LACERA — LA County Employees Retirement Association

LACERA covers LA County general and safety members. Six “plans” (A-G) exist, driven by hire date. Plan D is the most common for general members hired after mid-1977. PEPRA-tier members (hired on/after 1/1/13 without reciprocity) are in Plan G. Pre-PEPRA plans use lower age factors but don't have the compensation cap. Below is the Plan G (PEPRA) age factor table.

Age Factor Table — LACERA Plan G (PEPRA)

Survivor Options

LACERS — LA City Employees Retirement System

LACERS covers LA City civilian employees (not police/fire). Tier 1 uses a more generous benefit formula, Tier 3 (enacted 2016) uses reduced factors plus health-subsidy reforms. Final Comp = highest 12 months (Tier 1) or highest 36 months (Tier 3). Minimum 10 years service to vest.

Retirement Factor Table — LACERS Tier 1

Tier 3 factors run roughly 15-20% lower across the table, with a 2.0% max at age 63+.

Survivor Options

UCRP — University of California Retirement Plan

UCRP is the UC system's defined benefit pension (for staff, faculty, UC Irvine / UCLA / Berkeley / etc.). Two tiers. Highest Average Plan Compensation (HAPC) is 36 consecutive months. 1976 Tier has a more generous age factor ramp (max 2.5% at 60). 2013 Tier is flatter (max 2.5% at 65).

Age Factor Table — UCRP 1976 Tier

UCRP 2013 Tier reaches 2.5% at age 65 (not 60). Younger retirees get ~20% lower factors than 1976 Tier.

Survivor Options (Payment Elections)

NEAP — National Electrical Annuity Plan

NEAP is the IBEW/NECA-sponsored retirement plan for electrical workers (formerly the District Ten Plan, renamed 1/1/94). Unlike CalSTRS/CalPERS/LACERS, NEAP is a defined contribution plan — your retirement benefit equals the balance in your Individual Account. No age factor tables apply. Your account is auto-enrolled in a Life Stage Fund that rebalances as you hit age milestones (under 30s / 30s / 40s / 50s / 60s+). Vesting: 160 hours in Covered Employment.

Planning implication: Because NEAP is DC, your retirement income depends entirely on contribution hours worked + investment performance. There is no survivor election that reduces your benefit — a 50% joint-and-survivor annuity is the default if married, but you can roll the balance into an IRA at retirement and manage it like any 401(k). This means pension-max life-insurance strategies don't apply to NEAP the way they do to CalSTRS/CalPERS. The more important question for NEAP members is how to invest the account post-retirement (see Sequence-of-Returns Risk + MPT).

Private Defined Benefit Pension

Corporate DB plans (Boeing, GE Industrial, automakers, select utilities) and Taft-Hartley union plans use similar math to CalSTRS/CalPERS: Final Average Pay × Years of Service × a Benefit Multiplier. Multiplier is typically 1.0% - 1.5% per year of service (vs 2.0% for CA public plans), and the Final Average Pay definition varies by plan. Enter your plan's multiplier directly in the calculator below.